Welcome Back

9th September 2015 Dear Parent/Carer, Welcome back after the summer holiday and a warm welcome to our Year 3 pupils and families.

I hope that everyone has had a relaxing and enjoyable summer and now that the new term has started you are all ready to do your best and to embrace the new challenges and experiences that will lie ahead over the course of the year.

Everyone has made an excellent start to the new school year, all the pupils look smart in their full school uniforms and they have settled well into their new classes. This term we have several new members of staff, two new teachers, Mr. Rushton in 5 Larch and Miss Moffitt in 4 Willow, two new Teaching Assistants, Miss Kauser in 3 Oak and Mrs. Saleem in 5 Larch and last but not least a specialist Music teacher, Miss Marshall, who is looking forward to helping us to become a more musical and talented school. We hope that all new staff settle in well and enjoy working with our fantastic family of pupils and staff.

Over the summer break we have had three new classrooms, a sports hall, staffroom and foyer built joining the old Whitefield Infant School building to create spacious new facilities for Lomeshaye Junior School. All Year 4 classes will be housed in the new extension, and we now have a full school of 360 pupils. While there are still a few aspects of building work to be completed we expect that the whole school will be completed and the hall ready for use by the end of next week. With our fantastic new facilities we can ensure that every child will receive the best possible education whilst at Lomeshaye and we will once again be able use our community room to offer additional courses and workshops so that parents, families and community members are also fully involved in school life.

This year as a school we are going to be working on a number of priorities to improve even further.

The main areas are: Behaviour and British Values, Assessment without levels and Literacy.

Behaviour and values are vital for a tolerant, polite and respectful community, as such we are going to focus on using good manners, respecting others, being considerate, speaking kindly to each other and moving around school in a calm and orderly manner. You can help by insisting your children use good manners at home and show respect for others and how they are similar and different from themselves. Literacy is our other area of focus, and to help with this we ask that you listen to your child read every night for at least 10 minutes asking questions about the book that they are reading and also encourage them to practise their writing skills at by creating stories or writing letters to

friends and family members. Children need to see their parents and teachers working together. It gives them security and confidence, which they need if they are to develop good attitudes and become resilient learners.

This year at Lomeshaye things will be different for all of us. For myself, being the new Headteacher will be exciting and challenging and there will be changes that will be made over time for the good of our school and in order to provide the best opportunities for all of our pupils. I am extremely proud to lead a team that is committed to achieving high standards and nurturing every child to reach their full potential.

May this year see our superb school go from strength to strength; I look forward to meeting and working together with you, supporting every Lomeshaye pupil to Aspire, Believe and Achieve in all aspects of their life.

Thank you for your continued co-operation and support.

Yours sincerely,

Miss S A Jones Headteacher